In September 2015, the 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda was adopted, and for the first time, migration was included in mainstream global development policy. With the objective of communicating how IOM identifies migration in the 2030 Agenda to stakeholders and the wider public, and to shed light on the complex challenges and opportunities that accompany the migration-related targets, this IOM publication aims to showcase how different areas of migration are addressed in the Sustainable Development GoalsRead More

Global warming leading to climate change is a rapidly growing global threat to humanity and environment of the world. The present research in the Langtang Valley, Central Nepal attempts to find out the impact of climate change on glacier retreat and local community based on the studies of available long-term hydrological-meteorological data, satellite image analysis of glaciers from 1979 to 2009, and observation of local people and their experience on climate change issues. The high altitude areas of the Langtang Valley show a consistent trend of increase in temperature, a clear evidence of the global warming that has resulted in the fast melting of glaciers with both horizontal and vertical retreats. The Lirung Glacier and the Kimjung Glacier have retreated for over 900 metre and 400 metre, respectively, with an average retreat of about 40 metre/year and total vertical retreat in the snout position is 100 metre for both. The study also reveals that this glacier retreat is due to an increase in temperature and a change in patterns of precipitation and snowfall. The study also shades light on some socio-economic impacts of such changes on the livelihood of marginal communities residing downstream the affected areasRead More

The issues of air pollution and climate change have been the highlights of global media because of public concern. Scientific findings have established that the present climate change is a reality and not a hype any more. This book addresses the problem of air pollution responsible for climate change with a critical analysis of various aspects as given in different chapters. The book describes the sources of air pollution, drivers of climate change, impact of air pollution, regional resilience, deposition of air pollutants to various ecosystems, demographic shift and mitigation options for air pollution and climate change. It specifically highlights the global warming consequences in Indian region. All the chapters of this book have been written by the young and budding researchersRead More

The Mekong Program on Water, Environment and Resilience (M-POWER) is a network of organizations and individuals collaborating to democratize water governance in the Mekong Region. Since 2006, M-POWER has developed and implemented a wide range of activities across Cambodia, southern China, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand and Vietnam. Younger and older scholars, practitioners and ex-officials have probed water resources decision-making, prodded policy actors on their positions, and proposed ways for more inclusive, deliberative and adaptive water governance. Some of these engagements with the politics of infrastructure development and water resources management are reflected in analysis on the ecosystems, peoples, economies and politics of the Ayeyawady–Irrawaddy, Nu–Salween–Thanlwin, Chao Phraya, Lancang–Mekong and Red river basinRead More

China is undergoing a rapid transition from rural to urban dominated economy. Economy is booming, social structures are changing, ecosystems are stressed, and sustainability is challenged. We analysed the socioeconomic and environmental vulnerability of river systems that are entirely or partly located in the continental part of China. One-third of the mankind inhabit the area covered by this study. Six stress factors (governance, economy, social issues, environment, hazards and water stress) were analysed separately and in combination as an overall vulnerability. China's most vulnerable parts were found to be situated in the lower Hai and Yellow River basins, with their high population density, low water availability and high human footprint. The other water-stressed areas in the northwest showed high vulnerability, too, and so did the water-rich coastal areas due to high population density, natural hazards and high human footprint. We went beyond existing water stress and vulnerability studies in three dimensions. First, our perspective was highly multidimensional and thus very relevant in addressing China's water challenges in a realistic and multifaceted way. Second, we combined administrative and river basin scales and used an essentially higher spatial resolution than done so far. Third, we included the transboundary dimension, which is not customary. This is highly important since one billion people China's neighbouring countries, in basins that are partly in ChinaRead More

Women in the marginal areas of Uttarakhand have always played and continue to play a significant role in managing and operating most of the household and agricultural activities. They are the main subsistence provider in the hills and considered the backbone of hill agriculture. Their lives are intrinsically related to land, water, forest, which are the main components and integral parts of an eco-system. An adverse effect on any one of these components disturbs the other components due to strong linkages and interrelationship with each other and creates havoc on the life of people, especially women in the region. However, in recent years, environmental degradation, poor resource management and increased migration of men to the plains have deteriorated the livelihood options and added more workload to women of the region. The sufferings of the communities in these hilly areas are gradually increasing and their standard of living is declining because they have been neglected at both policy and practice levels by the government. The nexus between women, environment degradation and poverty are poorly understood and rarely treated in an integrated way. Therefore, the key objective of the present paper is to analyse the work participation of women operating at different sub-systems, impact of environmental degradation and role of women in sustaining the traditional agro-ecosystem in Khul Gad micro-watershed of Kumoun HimalayaRead More

Growing competition for scarce water resources has driven major changes in the way river basin planning is undertaken. This has resulted in a shift away from ‘technical’ approaches designed to maximize water availability and led to more strategic approaches to basin planning. These approaches aim to optimize outcomes by reconciling the competing demands of different sectors of the economy, the natural environment, and society as a whole.

This book is the result of a collaborative effort between the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) and the General Institute of Water Resources and Hydropower Planning and Design (GIWP), Ministry of Water Resources, People's Republic of China (PRC). GIWP has been tasked with coordinating the review and revision of a number of PRC's water policies, including PRC's master basin plans, the national water strategy, and the development of new inter-provincial water allocation plans. This book was originally conceived to provide support to these processes through the review and dissemination of modern approaches to water management challenges. The final product provides systematic analyses of the general process and methodologies for basin planning which the authors consider to have universal relevance.

The primary output from this collaboration has been three books, which together consider three fundamental water resources management issues: river basin planning, basin water allocation, and flood risk management

This report aims to highlight and raise awareness on the exposure and vulnerability of the energy sector to climate change. It also identifies adaptation options available to each source of energy generation as well as for the distribution and end use of electrical energyRead More

The Little Green Data Book is annual compilation of environmental data for more than 200 countries, providing up-to-date information on agriculture, forests and biodiversity, energy and emissions, water and sanitation, environment and health and oceans. The book includes an Adjusted Net Savings indicator—also known as “genuine savings”—which calculates the true rate of savings in an economy after taking into account investments in human capital, depletion of natural resources and damage caused by pollutionRead More